If pro golfer Phil Mickelson of Rancho Santa Fe got a mulligan on a tax comment that a lot of people said was silly, San Diego Mayor Bob Filner deserves one, too.

Thing is, Filner doesn’t want it.

His call for San Diego and Tijuana to share a common area code is as dumb as they come, but Filner isn’t calling it that. He calls it progress, and has since his days as a congressman when he pushed for the idea because he thinks calls are more important than walls and because the divisions between our two cities would be, well, phony if long distance were eliminated.

“Technically, it’s a trivial matter. You throw a few switches,” Filner said last Monday. “Politically, it’s more difficult.”

His comments came during his first formal appearance south of the border since becoming mayor in December, at a meeting to promote regional ties.

I’m all for better ties, but Filner’s area code idea, which others promoted in the 1990s, is not as simple or as smart as he suggests. San Diego County has three area codes and the city has two. Which one would be used? What about Mexico’s country code? And this is 2013: Cellphones make area codes almost meaningless.

If Filner really wants such singularity, shouldn’t he start lobbying telecommunication companies to let us make calls to Mexico for free?

That loud click you just heard was all those companies hanging up on our mayor.

Look, his idea will go nowhere. But here are others that will make it out of the door:

1) Attend a Xolos soccer match in Tijuana wearing Chargers or Padres gear. Or come to a Chargers or Padres game in Xolos gear.

Go tailgate in Tijuana and strike up a conversation with someone wearing a Xolos hat or scarf or jersey. (Don’t dwell on it. The scarves are cool.) Fans of that team just won a national title. I’m sure they’ll be all too happy to tell you about it. They’ll probably offer you a taco or a Tecate as well. Nothing can lead to binational accord more than a tailgate party. And it’s a blast. Can’t beat the smell of carne asada on the grill and the sounds of tens of thousands of fans cheering on a winner.

As for Xolos fans attending sporting events on this side of the border, my advice is don’t just wear red and black clothing. We’ll only mistake you for San Diego State University Aztec fans (not that there’s anything wrong with that). Whereas if you wear your Xolos gear, we’ll sidle up to you, congratulate you and carry on a winning sports conversation. Maybe we’ll even buy you some of that famous San Diego microbrew.

2) Treat yourself to a Tijuana restaurant.

The foodie scene south of the border is fantastic. It’s been a year since The New Yorker profiled Tijuana chef Javier Plascencia and shared a secret many San Diegans already knew: He and other fine chefs have been working “to turn Tijuana into a site of gourmet pilgrimage.” The high-profile story laid it on the table: Tijuana, long known as a gateway for drugs, is becoming a gateway to a thriving foodie scene for all of Baja California. Yes, the drug cartels and the crime, the kidnappings and murders have kept tourists away, but times and tastes change.